Wireless communication devices capable of “dispatch communication” between devices are available. An example of these are wireless communication devices from Motorola operating on an integrated digital enhanced network provided by Nextel in the United States. The dispatch communication feature is known among other things as “walkie talkie” or “PTT” communications. In many such devices, it is possible to arrange a number of users into a unit or group for ease of operation in using the dispatch communication feature. When the wireless communication device is a member of a particular group or talk group it is “associated” with that group. A wireless communication device may be associated with one or more groups. When the wireless communication device is enabled to operate within one of its associated groups, that is, able to select the group and commence dispatch communication, the wireless communication device is “affiliated” with that group. Currently, the wireless communication device may only select one affiliated group at a time from those with which it is associated. The affiliated group may be a predefined set of associated groups known as multiple simultaneous talkgroups. There is no interactive way for a device or user thereof to define a list of affiliation groups. Further, the user of a wireless communication device has no formal way of discovering or determining the groups with which it is associated, leaving that to word of mouth or other informal means.
Clearly a need exists for solutions to these problems of interactive affiliation with multiple groups or talk groups and group discovery.